MasterChef star Graham Elliot riffs on food and musicBack to video

“It’s interesting, you equate cooking to music,” the Chicago celebrity said in an interview in Vancouver after a cookbook signing at Walmart (of his book Cooking Like A Master Chef) and giving a talk at Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts.

“I think of cooking as riffs coming together at the end, and if you take that further, flavours are like notes. Then there are different kinds of music. Classical would equal Guy Savoy and you can equate food styles to to rock, hip hop, reggae and country music.” But, he says, at least with music, you can record it and it lasts. He is, of course, the chef of choice to play culinary director at Lollapalooza, Chicago’s annual music festival.

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Elliot has nothing but high regard for Gordon Ramsay, his super-famous colleague on MasterChef. “What you see is what you get. He’s one of the funniest people I know, and the greatest leader.”

The biggest failing with contestants’ cooking on MasterChef was proper salting, he says.“You don’t need to add a million things to a dish. Seasoning is how you make it delicious.”

Elliot discovered cooking when, much to parental horror, he dropped out of high school to join a punk rock band and work in restaurants.

“It’s why I went on to train as a chef,” he said, “but I’ve never stopped loving music — writing, playing, recording it.”

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Had he pursued music with the seriousness he put into food, goodness knows where Elliot, 39, would have gone with it.In his 20s, he was the youngest four-star chef in the U.S., named one of Food & Wine’s best new chefs, and his first restaurant, Graham Elliot, was one of three U.S. restaurants to hold two Michelin stars. (He now runs a more casual bistro.) He’s so appreciated in Chicago that September 19 is Graham Elliot Day.

And while there have been wild leaps of creativity in the culinary landscape and kitchens are incubators of invention and fantasy now, he sees an international sameness, a “San Pellegrino effect,” he says, referring to San Pellegrino’s World’s 50 Best Restaurant lists.

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“Everyone plates the same way, from Vancouver to New York to Paris.”

He likes the democracy of MasterChef competitions. “Everyone has access. They come out of the woodwork — stay-at-home moms, lawyers, celebrities,” he says. “It’s really, really cool. Cooking used to be all blue collar work. The younger generation love cooking and think it’s so cool.”

And a word to wannabe rock star chefs. You don’t get there without sweating buckets.

“I’ve never interviewed anyone and asked if they went to cooking school,” says Elliot. “The resume gets you to the door but work ethic is everything.”

And although Elliot is an artsy musician, he says “sensitive and artsy” don’t lend themselves to running a great restaurant.

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Recipes

From Cooking Like a Master Chef by Graham Elliot. (Atira Books).

Graham’s Signature Caesar Salad

“The idea is to focus on the amazing texture and flavour of the oversized crouton. I call it a ‘Twinkie’ because that’s exactly what it resembles. I use a dressing based on anchoiade, a gutsy, anchovy-garlic based sauce from the south of France.” — Graham Elliot

2 heads of romaine, or romaine hearts

Anchoiade Dressing:

2 tbsp (30 mL) low-fat sour cream

2 tbsp (30 mL) fresh lemon juice

1 tbsp (15 mL) Dijon mustard

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Freshly ground black pepper

Trim heads of romaine so tops are somewhat even and discard tough base. Cut heads into quarters to make 8 pieces. Soak lettuce quarters in cold water for a few minutes. Pat dry and set aside.

Dressing: Put sour cream, lemon juice, shallot, mustard, egg yolk, garlic and parsley in a blender and purée on high until smooth. Add the Parmesan and purée for about a minute. With blender running on medium speed, slowly add the grape seed oil and anchovy oil in a thin, steady stream. Pause every 10 seconds to make sure oil is fully incorporated. If too thick, add touch of water.

‘Twinkie’: In a food processor with metal blade, mix mascarpone, cream cheese, Parmesan, half and half, shallot and garlic. Process until fully incorporated. Season with salt and pulse to mix. Transfer to a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 F (176 C).

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Using a serrated knife, remove the crust from the brioche loaf. Slice 8 rectangles from the loaf, each about 3 in (7.5 cm) x 1 in (2.5 cm) thick. In a small saucepan, melt the butter. Brush over all sides of the bread rectangles.

Heat a non-stick sauté pan over medium heat and gently brown on each side. Drain on paper towels to absorbextra butter. Using rounded handle of wooden spoon, cut out two holes in the bottom of the Twinkies, each about 1/2 inch deep.

Parmesan Fluff: With microplane, grate Parmesan over a bowl.

Assembling salad: Use a clean pastry brush to generously coat each piece of lettuce with dressing. Roll the coated lettuce in the fluff so all the pieces are nicely covered.

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Meanwhile, pipe the filling in the holes in each Twinkie until stuffed. Place filled Twinkies on a baking sheet and put in oven for about 3 minutes to warm the centres. Remove from oven.

Put 2 warm Twinkies on each of 4 serving plates and gently rest a piece of lettuceon top of each Twinkie. Garnish each plate with 3 anchovy fillets and season with pepper.

“Yogurt’s acidic tang breaks down some of the tougher leg muscles during marinating and, at the same time, tempers some of the meat’s natural gaminess.” — Graham Elliot

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4 cups (1 L) plain yogurt

6 garlic cloves, crushed

Grated zest of 1 lemon

1 tbsp (15 mL) whole black peppercorns, toasted (see note)

1 two-pound (900 kg) boneless leg of lamb

4 cups (1 L) beef stock, preferably homemade

1/2 cup (125 mL) whole-grain mustard

1 tbsp (15 mL) honey

Salt

1 lb (454 g) small and medium Yukon Gold potatoes, halved if large

1/2 cup (125 mL) olive oil

Leaves from 2 sprigs fresh rosemary

Freshly ground black pepper

In a medium bowl, whisk the yogurt, garlic, lemon zest and peppercorns. Put the lamb in a dish large enough to hold it and pour the marinade over the meat. Turn it a few times to ensure it’s coated. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.

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In a saucepan, bring the beef stock to a boil. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until reduced to about 1 cup (250 mL). Stir in the mustard and honey. Cover to keep warm and set aside.

Bring a large saucepan filled with lightly salted water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook for about 20 minutes or until tender. Drain and put in a shallow bowl. Using a fork, crush the potatoes. Add the oil and rosemary leaves. Season with salt and pepper. Cover to keep warm.

Prepare a charcoal or gas grill so that the coals or heating elements are hot. Lift the lamb from the marinade and let the marinade drip off the meat. Grill the lamb until cooked to the desired degree of doneness. Rest for about 15 minutes and then slice. Divide the potatoes among 4 serving plates. Top the potatoes with slices of lamb and drizzle with the mustard sauce.

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Makes 4 servings.

Note: To toast peppercorns, spread in a dry pan and toast over medium-high heat for 3 to 5 minutes until aromatic.

Truffle Popcorn

“I started putting popcorn on the table at the restaurant instead of bread, and wow! Instant hit. I get a kick out of pairing a food that costs about a nickel with one that can cost thousands of dollars (truffles). This became one of my signature dishes.” — Graham Elliot

1/2 cup (125 mL)popcorn kernels

Corn oil for stovetop popping (optional)

1 1/2 tbsp (22.5 mL) unsalted butter, melted

1 tbsp (15 mL) truffle oil

1/4 cup (60 mL) Parmesan cheese, finely grated

2 tbsp (30 mL) chopped fresh chives

2 tbsp (30 mL) salt

1 tsp (5 mL) freshly ground black pepper

Pop the kernels in standard hot air popper or covered deep saucepan with a little corn oil. Transfer to a large bowl and add the butter and truffle oil. Toss well to coat.Add Parmesan, chives, salt and pepper. Toss well. Transfer to a serving bowl. Serve immediately.

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